On The Edge
by Trapped in a MatchBox
Summary: Andy needs to adjust to a new reality. Post 2x08 - Monster.
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: So, this is my very first attempt at writing Rookie Blue fanfiction. I discovered the show by accident a few weeks ago when I was bored out of my mind at home and basically got completely and utterly addicted to it. Watched four seasons in five days. I hadn't really written anything in months, but Rookie Blue seems to have inspired me to the point that I needed to sit down and let the words out._

_Anyway, so this picks up right after 2x08 "Monster" ends. I'm still not sure where I'm going with it. I am letting the characters decide. Hope you enjoy it._

* * *

**On the edge**

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"Feel better?"

Andy looks down at him and grins, still feeling a little breathless. Sam is sprawled out on the mat, just starting to get up. Okay, so maybe she went a little hard on him and turned him into her personal punching bag, but what was she supposed to do?

He _offered._

And now he is lying on the floor, a droplet of sweat rolling down his forehead – although she has no idea why exactly she is focusing on _that_ right now – and maybe she should feel bad about taking her frustration out on him, but strangely? She doesn't. Instead, she feels calmer and... invigorated, maybe?

Huh. He was right.

"I do, actually." She chuckles lightly, feeling all that pent up tension just slowly evaporate from her body. "Not to feed your ego or anything, but I guess you were right." She says, taking off her gloves and throwing them on the floor before offering her hand to him. He immediately grabs her hand and she helps pull him up, squeezing his hand in thanks. When he stands tall in front of her, she realizes he is just a tad closer than she expected and is still holding her hand.

"Told ya, McNally. I'm always right." He grins at her and squeezes her hand in return before taking a step back. "How about breakfast at The Penny, like you said?" He takes his gloves off, grabs hers and puts them back where they belong.

"Sure, let me just take a shower. I feel disgusting." She wrinkles her nose, bringing a hand up to wipe some of the sweat from her neck. He nods and steps out of the way so she can leave the room. Andy can feel his eyes on her as they make their way to the locker room and takes a deep breath. It's getting harder and harder to stay in control whenever he looks at her like that. Or whenever he is around. You know.

Just. He takes her breath away sometimes.

"See you back here in twenty?" He asks before they part ways.

She nods and makes her way into the women's locker room, letting out a sigh when she knows he can't see her anymore. It has been just a few weeks since she broke up with Luke. She really doesn't need to be feeling like this or even entertaining the thought of maybe jumping into a relationship with Sam.

She does not need the drama.

And if Sam didn't keep throwing those intense looks her way, she would be just fine. She was sure of it.

Shaking her head at her thoughts, she turns on the shower and steps under the warm water. She can think about that later. Right now she should be focusing on looking for a new place. Maybe she would do that later today, after sleeping for a few hours. As much as she loves Traci, she can't stay at her place forever and her pull out couch is really not all that comfortable – her sore back can attest to that. All these messed up thoughts have also been keeping her awake at night. If it's not Luke, then it's Sam. It's like a never ending cycle and it's always incredibly draining and frustrating.

So really. Apartment hunting. First thing when she wakes up later today.

Feeling a little more determined, she turns off the shower and grabs her towel, quickly drying herself off. When she looks at her watch, it tells her it has already been half an hour. Pulling her clothes on, she applies just a thin layer of makeup, so at least she won't look like a zombie, grabs her bag and starts toward the door. She is busy shoving her cell into her coat pocket when she seemingly hits a solid barrier.

"Easy there, McNally." Sam grabs her by the arms before she falls on her face. "Thought you'd drowned in there." He teases her, brushing a still damp strand of her hair behind her ear, a grin playing on his lips when she feels goosebumps spreading from his point of contact on her cheek throughout her body.

"Sorry, just... lot on my mind, that's all." She offers him a small smile and he ushers her in front of him with a hand at the small of her back. "I, uh. I need to start looking for a new place. Maybe will get to that this afternoon." Andy tells him when they leave the barn. The sun is happily shining on a bright blue sky, but it's still bitterly cold.

She shivers and pulls her coat tighter around her body, cursing herself for leaving the station with her hair still somewhat wet. If she catches a cold, it will be totally her own fault. Sam leads her to his truck and soon they are on their way to The Penny. The drive is pretty short and relatively silent as both of them seem to be lost in thought. She startles when she hears his door slamming closed and before she can open her own door, he is already at her side, pulling it open for her.

Andy steps out of the truck and lets out a yawn, rubbing her eyes. She has been awake for a little over thirty hours and it's starting to take its toll on her, now that all the adrenaline has worn off. Once she settles onto a chair, she drops her bag on the chair next to her and watches as Sam makes his way to the bar to order. Part of her feels like she should probably go order too, but he knows what she likes. He can definitely do it for her.

Resting her head on her hand, she lets out another yawn, feeling her eyelids droop just a little. She shakes her head, trying to stay awake a little longer, when her phone starts ringing. It's Luke. Rolling her eyes, she ignores the call and looks up in time to see Sam coming back with a tray with their breakfast.

"You're an angel." She sighs happily when he hands her her cup of coffee. It smells heavenly. He chuckles and takes the seat in front of her, digging into his scrambled eggs. Andy takes a sip from her coffee and feels the caffeine work its way into her veins, waking her up just a little bit more. She's about to take a bite from her omelet, when her phone beeps, signaling a text message. She rolls her eyes again when she sees it's from Luke.

"What's wrong?" Sam asks and she looks up at him, finally eating her breakfast. She swallows and takes a sip from her coffee again before answering.

"Luke is being a pain in the ass." She says testily and forks another piece of her omelet into her mouth. It's delicious and she won't let her stupid ex ruin her breakfast with Sam. "Guy can't take a hint."

"Well, maybe he's worried about you." Sam offers, drinking his coffee, before stealing a piece of her breakfast.

"Hey! Get your own!" She protests with a laugh, slapping his hand away. He looks entirely too proud of himself when he grins back at her. "He lost every right to even be worried about me." She continues with a sigh. "And the funny thing is, I'm not even sad anymore about the end of our relationship, you know? I'm just so... _angry_ about what he did. It was _humiliating_." She eats some more and takes the time to savor her breakfast. "Sorry, I'm sure you don't want to hear about it anymore."

"Andy, come on. You know you can talk to me about whatever you want." He reaches out and covers her hand with his. "I got your back. You know that, right?" He brushes his thumb over her skin gently and she feels warm all of a sudden, calmer, safe.

"I know, Sam." She smiles at him and drinks the rest of her coffee. His thumb is still drawing lazy circles on her hand. "Hey, didn't you say you couldn't make it to breakfast earlier?" She asks suddenly, the memory of inviting him out for breakfast back at the barn popping into her mind.

"Eh, it wasn't anything that important." He shrugs and drains the rest of his coffee. Giving her hand a gentle squeeze before fishing his wallet out of his pocket, he starts pulling out his money before Andy can even process what he is doing.

"Sam, hey, no. What are you doing? I invited you, remember? It's on me." She protests weakly, but he shakes his head, leaves the money on the table and gets up.

"Don't worry about it. You can pay next time." He grins at her and grabs her coat, holding out for her to put it on. Once she is bundled up, he pulls her hair out of her coat slowly, his hands lingering on her shoulders just a little bit longer than strictly necessary. "Come on, I'll drive you home." He says when his hands drop to his sides. Andy looks up at him, wondering just what exactly is going through his mind right now.

He is different. Has been different, actually, for these past few days. He is touching her a lot more, for starters. Just casually, but she knows it's different. It's almost like he is feeling braver and bolder when it comes to her. She lets him lead her back to the truck, buckling her seat belt before resting her head on the closed window.

"You still staying at Nash's house, right?" He asks and she nods, her body feeling so heavy and tired now that she has relaxed.

Andy closes her eyes for just a second and startles when she hears him calling her name and feels his hand on her knee. Looking around, she feels a bit lost until she recognizes Traci's house to her right. She turns back to him and he offers her a small smile, a soft look in his eyes as he watches her. She rubs her eyes sleepily and blinks slowly, trying to lift the sleep fog from her brain.

"Sorry, didn't mean to fall asleep on you." She says quietly and he chuckles, reaching out to brush her too long bangs back behind her ear, letting his thumb brush gently against her skin.

"Don't worry about it." He smiles at her again and she sighs.

Andy has to try really hard not to lean into his touch, but in the end, her sleepiness gets the better of her and she slightly nuzzles against his touch. Just a little. It's not like he is completely innocent either.

"I should go." She finally manages to say after a moment. "I really want to start looking at a few places later."

"Well, if you need some company, you know where to find me." He lets his hand fall between their seats and she immediately misses his warmth.

"I just might take you up on that." She smiles at him and unbuckles her seat belt. "Thanks for breakfast, Sam." She reaches out and touches his hand. "And for volunteering as my personal punching bag. We should do it again."

He chuckles and turns his hand around, holding hers for a moment.

"I just might take you up on that." He throws her words back at her teasingly and she laughs, shaking her head. "Go get some sleep, McNally. I'll talk to you later."

"See you later." She tells him and steps out of the truck, pulling her bag over her shoulder. "Hey," She catches his attention after slamming the door closed. "Thank you. For everything." She says honestly, hoping he can understand the gratitude and affection that she feels for him.

"You got it, Andy." He gives her one last smile, dimples and all, before driving away.

Andy stands on the sidewalk for another minute, trying to get the butterflies in her stomach under control.

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**_A/N: Like it? Hate it? Should I quit writing Rookie Blue fic? Tell me all about it._**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Well, you guys ridiculously amazing. Thank you so much for such a warm welcome and I really hope you guys enjoy the ride.**

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**On the edge**

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**Chapter 2**

"Want to tell me what that was about earlier this morning?"

Andy hears Traci's voice and tries to control her suddenly racing heart. She is at her friend's kitchen making some coffee and was so lost in her thoughts about this morning that, when Traci asks, her heart decides to skip a beat and then run overtime. It's not like she has anything to be nervous about. After all, nothing happened.

"What are you talking about?" She pours herself a cup, hoping against hope she sounds as casual and relaxed as she intended. Turning around, she faces her friend and motions toward her cup. "Want some coffee?"

Traci narrows her eyes at her, clearly not buying her act.

"Sure." She says and Andy immediately reaches up for another mug in the cupboard above her head. "And don't change the subject. You and Swarek?" She raises an inquisitive eyebrow at her when Andy hands her a full cup.

"I still don't know what you're talking about, Trace. What about me and Sam?" She takes a sip of her coffee and avoids her friend's gaze, looking outside at the darkening sky instead.

"Come on, Andy. I saw you guys outside this morning and you looked mighty cozy, if you ask me." Traci grins at her friend and watches expectantly as Andy blushes and tries to hide her warm face behind her mug by taking another sip.

"He gave me a ride, that's all. We went to get something to eat after everyone was cleared and he drove me home afterwards." She shrugs and hopes Traci will just drop it.

She hasn't been able to make sense of anything in her head yet, so she is definitely not ready to share anything with her best friend. Especially because, knowing Traci, she was just going to push her towards Sam and she wasn't sure she was ready for that. Yet.

"Honey, you can't lie to save your life." Traci chuckles and shakes her head. "If you don't want to talk about it, that's okay. You know where to find me when you feel like sharing." She gives her friend a small smile and leaves the kitchen, leaving Andy alone with her thoughts once again.

Part of her feels bad about lying to Traci. Well, not lying, per se, but you know. Her head is a confusing mess of thoughts and the fact that she is still feeling sleep deprived is not helping at all. She managed to sleep well into the afternoon, but since it was already January, daylight was not around for long. So, her apartment hunting will have to wait until her next day off, which is the day after tomorrow, if everything goes according to plan. The least she can do for now is to try to look up some places online, so she'll know exactly what she wants to visit. She is still not sure about renting a place or getting a mortgage.

With a sigh, Andy refills her cup and makes her way to the living room where Leo is playing video games. She grabs her laptop from the coffee table and settles next to the boy on the couch to start her search. While her computer starts, she checks her phone, realizing she has a couple of unread texts. Clicking her inbox open, she rolls her eyes when she sees that two of them are from Luke. He wants to talk, he's worried, blablabla. Andy doesn't have any more time or patience for his crap.

The third message, however, is from Sam, which immediately brings a smile to her lips. She clicks on his name and reads his message. He wants to know if she is still thinking about going to look for a place today. She sighs and decides to call him, instead of texting back. While she waits for him to answer, she quickly opens a few tabs with her email account, Google and Facebook.

"Hello?" She hears his voice and feels bad. He sounds sleepy.

"Hey, it's me. Sorry, did I wake you up?" She grimaces, typing her login information and password to her email.

"Nah, it's okay. Was just taking a nap." He yawns on the other side of the line and she chuckles. "What's up?"

"Nothing, I just." She takes a sip of her coffee and leans over to put her cup on the coffee table. "I got your text. Just now, actually. I kind of overslept."

"So you're not going to look for a new place tonight, I take it?" He says and she can hear him moving around as he lets out another yawn. "I mean, it's what? Like six or so already?"

"Yeah, it'll have to wait. I'm looking a few places online tonight, just to get me started, you know?" She explains, brushing her bangs away from her eyes. Then she hears a crash, followed by a few expletives from Sam. "Jesus, Sam, what the hell are you doing there?" She asks, concerned, and hears him hiss, apparently in pain.

"Nothing, I just dropped a mug and it's in a million pieces right now on my kitchen floor." He sighs annoyed. "And I also managed to cut my hand. Damn it." He hisses again and Andy can hear water running in the background.

"Are you okay? How bad is it?"

"I'm okay, I just need to clean this up. Shit." He curses again and she sighs.

"Do you, uh." She thinks for a second before saying what she is about to offer. She's only being his friend, after all. "Do you need help? I can come over, if you want." She closes her eyes and bites her lip, expectantly. She really has no clue what the hell she is doing, inviting herself over to his place.

"Well." He pauses and she holds her breath, waiting for his answer. "I can order some pizza and we can maybe check out those places here. If you want." He sounds so casual, but Andy can definitely hear just a hint of insecurity in his voice. "I mean, if you want to come over."

"I can grab the pizza on the way. It's my turn, remember?" She teases and he chuckles quietly, making her heart race. "How is your hand? Is it deep?" She asks and he hisses again. "What are you doing?"

"Just trying to clean it up. It stings." He mutters the last part and she laughs lightly. "Glad you think this is funny, McNally." He growls out, but she knows he doesn't mean it.

"How bad is it, Sam?" She sobers up a little and closes her laptop, putting it back on the coffee table, before picking up her mug and making her way to the kitchen. "Do you think you need stitches?"

"Nah, I don't think it's that bad. I just bled all over the place, is all." He seems to be moving around again. Andy quickly rinses her mug and puts it back in the cupboard.

"Oh, that makes me feel so much better. I am not worried at all now." She quips, sarcasm dripping from her voice. He laughs on his side of the line and she rolls her eyes, a small, amused smile playing turning her lips up anyway.

"I'm okay, Andy. Don't worry." He reassures her and she finds herself nodding, even though she knows he can't see her. She walks back into the living room and grabs her coat and purse, checking her coat pockets for her gloves and hat.

"Alright. Still want me to come over?" She checks again, trying to convince herself that this isn't a big deal. It's just pizza and he is helping her look for a new place to live. That is all there is to it.

"Who am I to say no to free pizza?" He teases, making her laugh. "We can still order in, you know?"

"Fine, but I am still paying." She counters and feels light with joy when he laughs. "Okay, I'm on my way. I'll be there soon."

"Great, see you soon." He tells her and she hangs up, letting out a sigh.

What has she gotten herself into?

"Hey, Leo?" She calls out to Traci's son, putting on her boots, and waits until he pauses his game and turns around to face her.

"What's up?" He asks and she walks over to him, pulling her coat on.

"Listen, I'm going out for a little bit. Tell your mom I went over to Sam's place to help him out with something, alright?" She leans down and kisses his curly hair. "If you guys need me, I have my phone on me, okay?"

"You got it, Aunt Andy." He smiles up at her and she ruffles his hair.

"Thanks, buddy. You're the best." She smiles at him and he giggles. "I'll see you later."

"See ya." He waves at her and turns his attention back to his game. Andy makes her way to the front door and is just closing it behind her when she hears Leo call out very loudly to Traci. "Mom? Aunt Andy is going to Sam's house. Asked me to tell you."

"What?" She hears Traci's voice coming from her room and chuckles, shaking her head, amused. The kid is a piece of work. Also, the faster she gets out of here, the more likely she is to avoid her best friend's interrogation. At least for now.

Stepping out onto the street, she makes her way to the closest intersection in order to flag down a cab. The temperature has dropped significantly and she hurriedly tries to put on her hat and gloves. She stands on the corner of Traci's street for a few minutes, but there are no cabs in sight. Sighing, she figures her best bet is to walk. Sam's place isn't that far and she will be there in ten minutes tops.

Turning in the direction of his house, she walks quickly, trying to stay relatively warm. She pulls her coat closer around herself and stops at an intersection just a couple of blocks away from Sam's to wait out a red light. A few seconds later, she crosses the street and realizes that snow has started falling and falling fast around her. Cursing the stupid Toronto weather, she picks up her pace.

When she finally makes it to Sam's house, she just knows she is covered in snow and tries to shake it off, brushing her gloved hands over coat, quickly, before knocking. Sam opens the door for her and she pauses for a moment to look at him. She is so used to see him in uniform that it takes her by surprise to see him with an Academy sweater and sweatpants. His feet are covered in thick Toronto Police Service wool socks. She smiles at him and then directs her gaze to his hand. He has a cloth wrapped up around it and she can see the red stain that soaked through a little bit before the bleeding stopped.

"Did you walk here?" He asks bewildered, ushering her inside, after taking a quick look at her snowed state.

"Couldn't find any cabs and it started snowing on the way." She says while he closes the door behind them and then proceeds to brush the snow away from her coat. He pulls it open and helps her out of it, while she pulls her hat and gloves off.

"Jesus, Andy, are you crazy? It's freezing outside." He rubs her arm with his good hand in an attempt to warm her up. Little does he know that just his touch is warming her up alright.

"You don't live that far from Traci, you know. I made it here in ten minutes." She says testily. He rolls his eyes, but she ignores him. "How's the hand?"

"Eh, I'll live." He shrugs, touching the small of her back to guide her into the kitchen. "Want some coffee, hot chocolate? Something to warm you up?"

"Sure, hot chocolate would be nice." She smiles at him and gets one from him in return, his dimples making an appearance. Her heart skips a beat and she feels completely ridiculous. "Let me see the hand first." She sits on a stool and reaches out for his hand.

"I told you, it's not that bad." He protests, but she takes his left hand in hers anyway.

Carefully, she gently unwraps the cloth around his hand and takes a look at the cut. It's about a little over an inch long, but it looks deep. It doesn't seem to be bleeding anymore, which is good, but when she touches the skin around it, Sam hisses in pain.

"You should get this looked at, Sam." She tells him and brushes her thumb over his palm, away from his cut. "It looks kind of deep. As in you probably need stitches."

"It's fine. It's not even bleeding anymore." He complains and she rolls her eyes at his stubbornness. Bringing his hand closer to her eyes to get a better look, she relents.

"Fine, but at least let me put some gauze on it or something, so it doesn't get any worse." She bargains and he nods, a little annoyed. "Hey, I'm trying to look out for you here, you big baby." She points out and he sighs, turning around to lead her to the bathroom.

"I know. Sorry." He apologizes sheepishly. "Come on, I have a first aid kit in the bathroom."

Andy follows him and directs him to sit on the toilet while she gets everything she needs ready. She cleans it out with antiseptic and puts a gauze on it, keeping it in place with a piece of micropore adhesive tape.

"There, all done." She tells him, running her thumb over the bandage lightly, before letting it travel a little bit further until his wrist. It takes a moment for her to realize what she is doing, but when she does, Sam has a small smile for her, his eyes shining with what she hopes is affection for her. She smiles back and pushes herself up from where she was crouching in front of him. "How about we order that pizza?" She suggests and he nods, standing up as well. He towers a little over her and she turns around, trying to get her breathing in check.

"Thanks, Andy." He whispers and touches her hip in acknowledgement.

"No problem. That's what partners are for, right?" She grins up at him and he squeezes her hip lightly before letting her go ahead of him to the living room.

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"What do you think of this one?" Andy asks, turning the laptop his way when he gives her a bottle of beer.

Sam sits down next to her and puts his arms behind her on the back of the couch. The close proximity is making it harder and harder for her to concentrate. She shows him the place, a two-bedroom house, close to the station and right within her price range. It looks gorgeous.

"Looks like we may have found a winner, McNally." He grins at her and takes a sip from his beer. "But I still think you should look at the others as well. Go see for yourself all of them before making a decision."

"Yeah, I know. I'll call the agency tomorrow to set up the visits." She copies and pastes the link to her email and sends it to herself so she won't forget which ones she liked best. Closing the laptop, she sets it aside and stretches her arms above her head. "I should probably go." She lets out a breath and turns to look at him. "It's late."

"It's not even ten yet." He protests and motions to the pizza in front of them on the coffee table. "There is still plenty of pizza and beer."

"Aren't you supposed to be on the morning shift tomorrow?" She leans back against the back of the couch and - consequently - his arm.

"Nope. Switched with Oliver. He needs to take his kid to the doctor or something after they get out of school." He explains and tugs affectionately at her ponytail. "I only have to be in at two now. You're on the afternoon shift too, right?"

"Yup." She confirms and relaxes against his arm. "So what do you have in mind?"

"Movie, maybe?" He suggests and she nods, getting up to check out his movie collection. "Alright, feel free to choose whatever you want. I'm just going to put these in the kitchen."

He grabs a couple of empty bottles near the couch and she watches him leave, wondering just what exactly they are doing. It's like they are dancing around each other and, as much as she wants to just jump him and get it over with, part of her is terrified that this thing will blow up in their faces like it happened with her and Luke.

Although she is pretty sure Sam would never do that to her. On the other hand, she was pretty sure Luke would never do something like this either. He was supposed to be the safe choice and look where it got her.

Whatever. She is just going to go with the flow and hope for the best.

Sam comes back just in time to see her popping a dvd in. She gets back to the couch and sits back down next to him, leaning over him to get the remote on the arm of the couch on his side. Willing herself to relax, she presses play and leans back against the couch, only to find that Sam's arm is right back where it was a few minutes ago.

This time, she hesitates only for a moment, before relaxing against his touch. She feels him moving around a little next to her, trying to get comfortable. About half an hour into the movie, he starts to run his fingers very lightly on her arm; a few minutes later, she loses her battle with her self control and allows herself to lean into his side. She feels him let out a sigh when she relaxes into him and lets one out herself.

This doesn't have to mean anything. They are just friends watching a movie.

The next thing she knows, she startles awake and the menu of the dvd is playing an annoying song. She sleepily looks around for the remote to turn the TV off. Once that's done, she realizes she is not alone and Sam is fast asleep next to her, his arm still around her shoulder.

She debates with herself for a moment, but sleep gets the best of her and she leans into Sam's side again, closing her eyes.

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**A/N: Thoughts?**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: You guys are amazing. That's all I have to say. I'm a little overwhelmed by how welcome into the fandom you're all making me feel. Thank you so much.**

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**On the edge**

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**Chapter 3**

When Sam wakes up the next morning, he feels something warm weighing down on his side, concentrating on his chest. He blinks slowly, trying to clear the sleepy fog from his mind. Then he looks down at the source of warmth on his chest and, to his surprise, Andy's light brown hair is the first thing he sees.

He blinks again, this time to determine that he isn't, in fact, still dreaming, but sure enough. That's McNally, alright, and she seems to have made herself comfortable on him and is using him as her human pillow. She has an arm curled close to her face, over his chest, and Sam tries to stay as still as he possibly can. Now that he has seen her sleeping on him, looking so unguarded and vulnerable and unbearably young, his heart is working over time and he is sure it's going to wake her up any second now.

Taking a deep breath in, he slowly lets it out, rubbing a hand over his face to wake himself up a little more. He knows he should probably get up and let her sleep some more. Actually, he should just get up so she doesn't wake up and see how they spent the night and freaks out on him. Things have been going so well between them lately that he is terrified to do anything to jeopardize that. She just broke up with Luke and she needs time. He knows that.

It's just. God, he is just so crazy about her. It's becoming harder and harder to keep his distance, specially now that she is single and seems to - well, he wouldn't say encourage, but she sure as hell doesn't reject his advances, as small and subtle as they are. At least, he hopes they are. Still, he needs to get up, get out of this couch before she wakes up. The problem is, how is he supposed to do that when she's draped so comfortably over him? There is no way he can move her without her waking up. It's just not happening.

So he decides, it's just something that needs to be done and if she wakes up - well, he'll cross that bridge when he gets there. Very slowly, he starts to move her, just enough so he has enough space to move around himself. Just when he thinks he is home free, she starts to stir and it's all he can do to not just drop her, like he's been burned.

Which is completely ridiculous, if you think about it. He is a grown man, a police officer. He can do this.

He stands up slowly and moves her very gently until she's lying on the couch. She stirs again, mumbles something he can't understand, but immediately drifts back to sleep. He lets out a breath, relieved, and pulls a blanket from the back of the couch to throw it over her. She just seems to make herself more comfortable, pulling it tighter around her, without even waking up. Amused, he covers her bright pink socks clad feet and can't resist the urge to lean down and very lightly kiss her hair.

Leaving her to sleep some more on the couch, he makes his way to the bathroom to take a quick shower. After that, he pulls on some clean, warm clothes - the temperature seems to have dropped even more and his house is kind of freezing right now. He dries his hair off with his towel, and goes back into the living room to increase the thermostat. Satisfied that he is no longer at risk of turning into a human popsicle, he checks on Andy, but she is still fast asleep. Grabbing his phone and his laptop from the coffee table, he realizes it's still really early, just after seven, but now he is already awake and there is no way he can go back to sleep now. Under normal circumstances, he would go out for a run when he had mornings off, but there is no way he is leaving the house in this weather. Not to mention that Andy is here in his house, so there is no way he is leaving her here by herself.

With a sigh, he decides to at least make some coffee and makes his way to the kitchen. Once there, he grabs a piece of toast and munches on it thoughtfully while he waits for the coffee to finish brewing. Letting out a yawn, he pours himself a cup, grimacing when he carelessly picks the coffee pot with his injured hand. Putting it back on the counter, he checks the bandage Andy put on his cut last night and it seems to be blood free, so that's a victory. It still hurts, though, so he will have to be careful for a little while.

He sits at the table, sipping his coffee and checking his email on his laptop. There is a message from Sarah, saying she will be in town in two weeks and she is bringing Jamie with her. Sam smiles at her silly question if they can stay with him for a couple of days while she is working some stuff out. His sister can be pretty ridiculous sometimes. He emails her back, telling that of course they can stay for as long as they need. He hasn't seen them in a couple of months and really misses them. Jamie is turning eight soon and he wants to enjoy spending a little time with his nephew before he grows up too fast and doesn't want to hang out with his Uncle Sam anymore.

He takes another sip from his coffee, so lost in thought, that he doesn't see Andy standing a little further to his right, watching him.

"Hey," she announces herself and Sam very nearly jumps at the sound. "Morning." She says quietly, padding into the kitchen in her socks. He recovers quickly, willing his heart rate to slow down and offers her a small smile.

"Hey, yourself." He drinks the rest of his lukewarm coffee. "Nice socks." He observes and she blushes slightly.

"Shut up." She mumbles and makes her way to him, stopping at the other side of the table, as if unsure about what to do with herself.

"Coffee?" He offers and she nods appreciatively. He stands up and grabs a mug from the cupboard, preparing her coffee just the way she likes it. Andy sits at the table and lets out a yawn, which is cut short by a sneeze.

"Oh, that's just great." He hears her muttering under her breath, before sniffling a little. He puts the coffee filled mug in front of her and touches her shoulder, squeezing it gently. "Thanks, Sam." She smiles up at him and nods, returning to his seat. Andy takes a sip of her coffee and lets out a contented sigh. "I didn't mean to fall asleep on you last night. Sorry about that." She says after a moment of silence.

"Don't worry about it." He brushes it off, shaking his head. "You weren't the only one who ended up falling asleep." He tells her and waits for her reaction. Wonders if she even remembers that she was sleeping quite literally on him for an entire night.

"Yeah, well." She shrugs and drinks some more of her coffee. "You make a very comfy pillow." She grins at him and he chuckles.

"Glad to be of service, McNally." He raises an eyebrow at her, but in the end an amused grin curves his lips up. "There is toast, if you want. Over there." He points at the counter and she nods, before sneezing again. "You should eat something. Looks like you're coming down with a cold." He says and she sighs, resting her head on her hand.

"Looks like it. This sucks." She complains and starts getting up, but he moves faster and makes it to the counter before she can even step away from the table.

"Sit tight. I'll make you something." He makes his way over to her and touches her forehead gently. "Doesn't feel like you have a fever." He reassures her and allows his hand to drift down to her cheek for just a moment, brushing his thumb lightly over her skin.

"Yet. I always get a fever whenever I'm sick. It's annoying." She leans into his touch, closing her eyes for a moment, and he has to resist the urge to pull her closer and just let her make herself comfortable in his arms again.

"Well, if you eat right, maybe you can fight it off before it even begins." He brushes her hair behind her ear and finally steps back, pulling out a frying pan from one of the cupboards. "That's what you get for walking around in the snow, by the way."

"Yeah, yeah, I don't need a lecture." She mumbles, annoyed, and he chuckles.

"You're grumpy when you're sick." He grins at her and she glares at him, which makes him chuckle again.

They fall into a comfortable silence, with Sam making her some scrambled eggs and Andy checking her phone. He steals glances at her and sees that she is texting someone, a thoughtful look on her face. Then she looks up and catches him watching her. To his surprise, her lips curve up just a little bit and she goes back to texting whoever it is that's got her so concentrated.

"It's just Traci." She volunteers when he puts a plate with scrambled eggs in front of her. He nods and sits back down at his side of the table. "She was worried."

"What'd you tell her?" He asks curiously before eating some of his scrambled eggs. He knows Andy is very close friends with Nash and wonders just what she is thinking about this whole thing with them.

Andy watches him for a moment, as if trying to gauge why exactly he is asking this.

"That I fell asleep on your couch." She shrugs again and eats some of the food in front of her. "Oh, Sam, this is so good." She very nearly moans and that does... _things_ to him. He has to take a deep, steadying breath.

"You're welcome." He grins at her and she rolls her eyes, amused nonetheless.

They fall into silence again, but it's comfortable. When they are both done, Andy stands up and gets both their plates and mugs and move them to the sink. When she starts washing them, he gets up and turns the water off.

"You don't have to do this, Andy." He says, but she only shakes her head, turning the faucet back on.

"It's the least I can do, Sam. You've already made me breakfast and let me sleep on you all night." She looks up at him, waiting for his reaction. He sighs in defeat and runs his hand up and down her arm affectionately. "I'll be done in a minute, don't worry." She throws a small smile his way and returns to her task.

He makes his way back into the living room and turns the TV on to watch the morning news. It looks like the snow will not be going away any time soon and, when he looks out the window, he realizes it's coming down again in full force. Allowing himself to relax, he leans back against the back of the couch, closing his eyes, and lets out a heavy sigh. This thing with Andy, this... dance or whatever it is they are doing, sometimes it's really exhausting. Part of the time he is so comfortable with her; but there are always moments when he is not sure what he is allowed to do, so he feels like he is walking on eggshells around her.

A few minutes later, he feels Andy dropping down on the couch next to him.

"I feel like crap." She announces and he opens his eyes to see that she is covering her eyes with her hands. "I should probably go." She says and turns to look at him.

"Have you looked out the window?" He asks her and she shakes her head, lifting herself up just enough to be able to look at the window to her left. "It's snowing like crazy out there. It's probably below freezing."

"Shit." She curses and closes her eyes again, letting out a heavy sigh. "Work today is going to be a blast." She says dryly and he laughs.

"Stay here, get some rest." He suggests, changing his stance so he's sitting towards her, closer. "There is a spare bedroom with an actual bed in it. It's got to be better than Nash's pullout couch, right?" He teases and can see that she is tempted. He stands up and reaches out his hand to her. "Come on."

She takes his hand and lets him pull her up, with her ending up right up against him. He steadies her with a hand on her hips and she seems to allow herself to lean against him for a moment. She must really feel like crap because she is usually a lot more guarded than this. Although... Well, that's been changing lately.

"I hate getting sick, Sam." She complains and he chuckles, wrapping an arm around her waist to guide her into the spare bedroom.

"I'm not sure there is anyone who actually enjoys it, Andy." He teases her and receives a light jab on the ribs for it.

"Shut up. You know what I mean." She glares at him and he just shakes his head, completely amused by this new, grumpy side of her.

"Do you want something more comfortable to wear?" He offers when they reach the room and she sits on the bed. She nods and he quickly makes his way to his room, grabbing a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt for her.

He walks back into the room and hands both items to Andy before leaving again, this time for the bathroom. There, he grabs some cold medicine and aspirin and goes back to the kitchen for a glass of water. Returning with his hands full, he finds Andy already changed and under the covers.

"I got you some cold meds, if you want." He shows them to her and puts everything on the nightstand. "I'll be right outside, if you need me, okay?" He sits down next to her and she nods, smiling at him. "How are you feeling?"

"Like I'm starting to catch a cold." She quips and he rolls his eyes, leaning down to press a kiss to her forehead without even realizing what he is doing. "Thanks." She whispers, reaching out for his hand when he starts to get up.

"For what?"

"Just... I don't know. Being you, I guess. Taking care of me like this." She says a little shyly and he smiles, his expression softening as he caresses her cheek gently with his thumb.

"Partners, remember?" He tells her after a moment, afraid that he will just suddenly burst out how crazy he is about her.

"Yeah." She says with a pleased smile and closes her eyes.

Sam kisses her forehead again and makes his way out of the room.

* * *

**A/N: Thoughts?**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Again, thank you so much for your continued support. You guys rock my world. Also, if you find any mistakes, I'll fix them tomorrow, but feel free to point it out to me. It's late and English is not my first language, so sometimes I slip up a little bit.**

* * *

**Chapter 4**

* * *

It's a little past ten when Andy wakes up. Her body aches and she regrets the decision to stretch it out after checking the time. Rubbing her eyes sleepily, she feels a little lost when she doesn't recognize the room she is in at first. She looks out the window, sees the snow covered sidewalk on the other side of the street and it all comes back to her in flashes.

She's at Sam's. Right.

And they totally spent the night together on the couch. Huh. She doesn't know what to make of that. No, scratch that. She _knows_ exactly what to make of that, but she's too afraid to just jump into it. She yawns widely and checks the time again on her phone. She should probably get up already, even though her body is begging her to stay in bed and she still feels like crap.

Her throat is starting to hurt. Damn it. The next thing on her list of symptoms is a fever, which she is pretty sure is not too far away.

Sighing in defeat, she smiles when she sees the meds Sam left for her on the nightstand. She grabs a couple of pills and swallows them with some water, hoping against hope they will help her get better immediately. Swinging her feet out from under the covers, she takes a moment to get her bearings and then pushes herself up, her toes curling against the cold floor.

She leaves the room and makes her way to the bathroom, just down the hall. There, she splashes some water on her face and looks at her reflection in the mirror. Great, she already looks sick. Patting her face dry with a fluffy towel, she takes a deep breath before going to look for Sam. They have been dancing around this thing between them for these past couple of days and she just doesn't know how to act around him sometimes, which is ridiculous.

Shaking her head at the sheer ridiculousness of their situation, she walks into the living room and finds Sam on the couch fast asleep. The TV is on and he seems to have nodded off while watching it. He looks different when he is like this. Younger.

Andy carefully sits now on the couch, at his hip, and touches his arm.

"Sam," She calls gently and he immediately starts stirring and a moment later opens his eyes. He is definitely a light sleeper. "Hey." She smiles at him and he blinks slowly, sleepily, as if trying to make sense of why exactly she is there.

"Hi," he croaks out and rubs a hand over his face. "How are you feeling?" He asks, turning a bit on his side to make more room for her. His hand finds hers, which is still tracing absentminded patterns on his arm. She didn't even notice she was doing it.

"I'm not sure yet. I took the meds you left on the nightstand." She explains with a small smile. "Thanks for that."

"No problem." He returns her smile and yawns, looking like he is in no hurry to get up. "Let's hope they do their job."

"Speaking of jobs, I should get going. It's almost eleven already and it looks like the snow is finally giving us a break." She nods at the window and grimaces a little when the movement makes her head hurt.

"Are you still going to work?" He asks, concerned, and she shrugs.

"Probably. I mean, unless I get much worse. But as of right now..." She trails off and he lets out a sigh. "Which is why I need to get to Traci's. I want to get my stuff together, call the agency about the visits tomorrow and try to rest a little bit more before my shift."

"If you're sure." He raises an eyebrow at her and she nods. "Alright, go get dressed. I'll give you a ride."

"No, that's okay, Sam. I can call a cab." She starts to protest, but he squeezes her hand gently.

"McNally, I can drive you home. It's like five minutes away." He finds her gaze and lets his thumb draw circles on her skin. "It's no big deal."

"Alright." She gives in and stands up. "I'll be right back." He lets her hand go and she immediately misses its warmth.

She walks back to his spare room and changes back to her own clothes, his smell still lingering even after she has taken his clothes off. Folding them carefully, she leaves them on the bed, after making it as well. She makes her way back to the living room and sits on the couch to pull her boots on. Sam is nowhere in sight, so she figures he's getting dressed as well. She locates her coat in his coat closet and puts it on.

After she is ready, she goes in search of him when he starts to take entirely too long.

"Sam?" She calls out, knocking on his bedroom door. When she opens it, images of that night of the blackout suddenly pop back into her mind and she has to take a deep breath in order to try and steady her racing heart. "You in here?" She finds him sitting on the bed, trying to change his own bandage one-handed. "What are you doing?"

"It got wet. I had to change it." He explains while trying to tape the gauze to his hand by himself. Andy rolls her eyes and makes her way to him.

"Let me do it." She reaches out, slapping his hand away. "You could've just asked me, you know?" She pulls the bandage away to check out the cut. "It looks better." She tells him and covers it again, doing a much better job at changing his bandage than he was doing. "See? Much faster." She grins at him teasingly and he rolls his eyes at her, standing up.

"Let's get going, Nurse McNally." He jokes back and pulls her up from the bed. She laughs and bumps her shoulder on his before walking ahead of him to the living room.

* * *

The drive to Traci's is really short and they are each lost in their own thoughts. Andy steals a few glances in his direction, but he seems to be in own little world. She knows they are teetering on the edge of whatever this is between them, but it seems neither of them is brave enough to make the first move and it's just so frustrating.

On the one hand, she just wants to jump, just get into this with him because she can't deny it anymore. Her feelings for him run deep and she is actually pretty amazed at how she managed to delude herself that she was better off with Luke for such a long time. On the other hand, it also feels too soon. She broke up with Luke just a few weeks ago and it seems too soon to be jumping into another relationship, even if it's with Sam.

Sam parks his truck in front of Traci's house and turns to her. She meets his gaze, biting her lip, suddenly unsure about what to say.

"Want me to come pick you up later?" He offers and she smiles at him, but shakes her head.

"I'll go in with Traci. She's on the afternoon shift too." She says and sneezes. "Thanks, though. For everything." She sniffles a little and reaches out to touch his arm. He nods at her, pushing her hair back behind her ear. It seems to be one his favorite past times now, she thinks with an amused smile.

"Try to get some rest. You're no use to me on patrol if you're dragging your feet." He teases her and she rolls her eyes. "Seriously, Andy. Take care of yourself. You feel a little warm."

"I'll check my temperature when I get inside." She reassures him and he nods, his hand still on her cheek, cradling her face. "If it gets any worse, I'll call in sick, Sam. I promise." She tells him and he nods.

Before she even realizes what she is doing, she turns her face just slightly and presses a kiss to his palm. She hears him suck in a surprised gasp and feels herself blushing at her stupidity. This is exactly why you should think before you act. When she meets his gaze again, he is looking at her with wonder in his eyes, surprise still written all over his expression.

"I should go." She reaches up and touches the hand that is cradling her face. "See you later." She says quickly and is suddenly out of the car, slamming the door closed behind her.

Just as she is opening Traci's front door, she turns back and sees he is still there, watching her. She waves at him with a small smile and he grins, finally starting the truck again before driving away. Shaking her head, she walks in and closes the door before taking her coat off and putting it in the closet near the door. The house seems to be silent and Andy wonders if everyone is out. She knows Leo is probably at school, but she thought Traci would be home or at least Mrs. Nash.

She makes her way to the living room and sits on the couch, leaning back for a moment when a powerful sneeze escapes. Cursing this stupid cold, she tries to find the strength to get up and walk the short distance to the kitchen to make some tea. While she waits for the water to boil, she grabs her laptop and her phone and logs into her email account to get the number of the real estate agency. When she finally books a couple of visits for the next morning, she really, really hopes that she will be better in 24 hours and that this feeling that she is just about dying will be long gone.

Checking the time, she decides to go lie down for a little bit and maybe take a nap. Sam is right, the longer she rests, the faster she will heal. She makes her way back to the living room and tries to make herself comfortable on the couch, pulling the throw blanket around her to keep her warm. Setting her alarm for forty minutes later, she closes her eyes and sleep soon pulls her under.

Her alarm sounds incredibly loud through the fog of sleep and her aching head. She reaches out trying to find the offending object and has to resist the urge to throw her phone against the wall to make it shut up. Dragging herself off the couch and into the bathroom seems like an almost impossible task, but she does it, anyway, hoping that after a shower she will feel at least a little bit better.

She gets dressed and goes into the kitchen to make herself some lunch. It's already past noon, so she just throws a sandwich together and sits down at the kitchen table with a glass of orange juice and her lunch. She debates with herself if she should call a cab to go to the station since it's started snowing heavily again. This day already sucks.

In the end, she decides to text Sam and ask him for a ride. After all he did offer, right? She was counting on Traci being here so they could ride to the station together. Although at the same time, she is kind of glad that she is not home right now because she feels like she is dying and is so not up to discuss her love life at the moment. And she just knows Traci will grill her until she gets every single detail. She was already very curious and a little insistent when she texted her earlier this morning. Okay, so she spent the night at Sam's, so her friend was totally justified in being suspicious, but nothing happened, really, even if it looked like it did from the outside.

Sam texts her back saying he will be there in five minutes and Andy quickly finishes her sandwich and drinks the rest of her juice. After brushing her teeth, she grabs her bag and puts her coat back on just in time to see Sam's truck parked outside. She locks the door behind her and puts her hat on, in an attempt to keep herself a little bit warmer. She runs to the truck and settles into the passenger seat before throwing a grateful smile in Sam's direction.

"I thought you were riding with Nash." He quips and she rolls her eyes, amused at his too casual tone.

"I don't know where she is. I was sure she was on the afternoon shift with me, but maybe she changed it." Andy shrugs and buckles her seatbelt. "Thanks for picking me up, though."

"No problem." He pulls the truck back into traffic and looks at her when they stop at a red light. "You feeling any better?" He rests his hand on the back of her seat and waits for her to meet his gaze.

"Not really." She sighs, her voice already sounding a little scratchy. "I did take a nap, though. And drank some tea and had lunch. But I still feel like crap." She leans back against the back of the seat. "Let's just hope today is a slow, calm day."

"Let's hope you haven't just jinxed us." Sam teases and she laughs lightly.

* * *

The rest of the ride is made in silence and Andy even drifts off for a couple of minutes, head against the window. Sam looks at her whenever they stop at a red light and grips the steering wheel tightly in order to keep his hands to himself. He is worried about her and all he wants to do is comfort her and keep her safe. He makes a mental note to talk to Frank before parade about keeping Andy on desk duty today. He will even volunteer to stay with her. The last thing she needs right now is to be patrolling the streets when it's freezing cold. That's a pneumonia waiting to happen.

When he pulls into the parking lot at the station, he kills the engine and reaches out to touch Andy's arm, calling her name softly.

"What? What's wrong?" She asks sleepily and he smiles at her, shaking his head, amused.

"We're here." He tells her and she nods, finally recognizing her surroundings. "Are you sure you're up to this?"

"I'm already here, aren't I?" She tells him and unbuckles her seatbelt. Before she can get out of the car, Sam takes hold of her wrist.

"Hey, if you feel you're getting worse, let me know and I'll take you home, okay?" He looks at her softly and she nods with a small smile.

They get out of the car and start making their way through the parking lot to get into the station. He sees Nash before Andy does and he can see how the young rookie's eyes widened when she saw them walking in together. Nash stalls a little to allow them to catch up with her. When they finally meet, he nods her way.

"Nash."

"Hey, Swarek." She smiles in his direction and then focus her attention on Andy. "You look like crap, Andy."

"Gee, thanks, Trace. You sure know how to make a girl feel better." She says dryly and Traci lets out a laugh. Sam touches Andy's arm to catch her attention.

"I have to go talk to Frank about something." He tells her and she nods. "See you guys in parade."

When he is leaving, he looks back to see that Nash has linked her arm with Andy's and is still close enough to hear part of the conversation.

"What are you doing here so early?" Andy asks in a hoarse voice.

"Nuh-uh, Andy McNally. We're talking about you right now. You have some serious explaining to do.

* * *

**A/N: Thoughts?**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: I am not sure if you guys got last night's update because FFnet was acting up when I posted chapter 4. So if you missed it, go back a chapter and then read this one. I hope you guys are enjoying this as much as I am.**

* * *

**On the Edge**

* * *

**Chapter 5**

Andy sighs and pinches the bridge of her nose, willing the insistent headache to go away. Traci is looking at her expectantly, but she is really not up to this right now.

"Trace, I feel like I'm dying." She starts, leading them into the women's locker room. "Can we please not to do this now?" She nearly begs, hoping her friend will see just how miserable she already is and stop bugging her about this.

She loves Traci. She really, really does, but right now she does not feel like sharing. In fact, this thing with Sam? She doesn't really feel like sharing any time soon. They need to get their act together and figure this out before even thinking about letting the outside world in.

"What's wrong with you?" Traci asks, opening her locker. "I mean, you were just fine yesterday."

"I have a cold, obviously, and I feel like crap." Andy says slowly and Traci rolls her eyes at her drama. So maybe she is being a little dramatic, but she hates being sick and she really does feel like she's dying.

"Okay, fine. Just answer one question?" Her friend bargains and Andy nods, buttoning her uniform shirt.

"Why did you disappear to Swarek's place last night?" She asks curiously and Andy groans. She just won't leave it alone, will she? _God_.

"He cut his hand open and I went over to help him out." She tries to explain patiently, but in the end she thinks she sounds like a grumpy child. "Then we ordered some pizza and he helped me look for a few houses to visit tomorrow."

Traci looks at her for a moment, narrowed eyes, as Andy clips on her tie. She is starting to get chills, so she checks her locker for some Tylenol and tucks some into her coat pocket - all the while studiously ignoring her friend's gaze.

"Okay." Traci finally breaks the silence after a minute and she looks at her surprised. Seriously, that's it? She was bracing herself for a full out interrogation.

"Okay." Andy repeats and closes her locker, sniffling a little bit. Her airway is starting to close up. She is going to sound ridiculous by the end of the day. "Come on, parade is about to start."

They leave the locker room and find Sam and Frank in deep discussion down the hall. Andy, frowns, wondering what they could be talking about and rubs her hands over her arms trying to retain some warmth in her body. She's got a fever coming, she can feel it.

Just as they're entering the room, she feels Sam taking hold of her wrist, effectively keeping her outside in the hallway. Traci raises an eyebrow at the two of the,m but Andy shakes her head and tells her to keep going and that she will be right behind her. Her friend nods, but still looks at her and Sam suspiciously. Andy ignores her pointed look and turns to him.

"What's up?"

"I talked to Frank. We're staying here today." He tells her and she is not sure if she should yell at him for making decisions for her or if she should kiss him for caring for her and not making her go out in the freezing cold weather when she is already feeling so miserable.

"You hate desk duty." She feebly tries to protest, but he shakes his head, pulling her a little further down the hall, away from prying eyes.

"Andy, you're sick. I'd hate for you to catch pneumonia even more." He explains softly and she smiles. He is just making it even harder to keep her distance when he does things like this. Seriously. "One shift riding the desk is not going to kill me."

"Okay." She agrees and lets out a sigh.

He squeezes her hand and gives her a small grin as peace offering. Then he touches her forehead with his other hand, slowly moving it down to her neck.

"Looks like you've got a fever coming on. You feel hot." He looks over to the parade room and Andy follows his gaze. Frank is already making his way to the front of the room.

"I've got some Tylenol with me." She pulls the bottle out from her coat pocket and shows it to him. "I'll take some after parade." She reassures him and he nods, pulling her in the direction of the room.

She smiles amusedly at his complete inability to keep his hands to himself now and follows him in. Just as they are getting into the room, she looks down the hall and sees Luke. If looks could kill, she is pretty sure Sam would be dead right now. Maybe even both of them.

* * *

By the end of the afternoon, Andy is about ready to go home. Even though they have been fairly busy - Frank put them both in booking - this shift seems to drag by. When her watch marks 8 pm, she leans back against her chair and stretches, hoping that will somehow ease the dull ache all over her body. Things seem to have finally slowed down and she is trying to gather the courage to get up and go get a cup of coffee.

Her fever has come and gone, so thank god for small mercies. She finally decides to stop feeling sorry for herself and gets up. The end of her shift is only a couple of hours away. If she made it this far, she can definitely wait until ten to go home.

"Do you want some coffee?" She asks Sam when he returns from locking up yet another guy. He nods at her and sits back down at the computer to complete some of the paperwork for the day.

She starts to make her way to the break room, when his voice stops her.

"Hey, McNally?" He calls out and she turns around. "Want to get something to eat when we get out of here? Put some decent food in you?" He teases with a grin and she rolls her eyes.

"Sure." She nods at him and keeps on her way.

When she gets to the break room, she pours some coffee into two cups, putting some cream in hers and leaving Sam's black. She has no idea how he stomachs this stuff like this - it's not like the coffee at the station even tastes good. She sips hers and sighs appreciatively, feeling the caffeine work its way into her system. Grabbing Sam's cup with her free hand, she starts to walk back to booking. When she's crossing the area near the front door, she sees a woman holding a little boy's hand, looking around, apparently looking for someone.

Taking another sip of her coffee, Andy changes direction and makes her way to the woman.

"Hi, can I help you?" She asks politely and the woman turns to her, startled. She has dark brown hair that falls in loose curls to her shoulders and looks remarkably familiar.

"Oh, hi, yes." The woman smiles at her, but Andy can see that she is apparently distressed about something. "Uh. I'm looking for Sam. Sam Swarek?" She says and Andy tries her best not to show any reaction when she looks from her to the little boy, whose hand she is still holding onto tightly. Just who is this woman?

"Sure, I'll get him for you. If you'll just wait a moment?" Andy smiles at her, trying to make her feel a little bit more at ease and makes her way back to booking. When she gets there, Sam is completely focused on his task and doesn't even look up when she puts his coffee cup on the desk next to him. "Sam," She touches his shoulder and he finally tears his eyes away from the screen and looks up at her.

"What is it?" He asks, reaching for his coffee and takes a sip.

"There's a woman out there asking for you." She tells him and he frowns. "I don't know who she is, but she seems upset." Andy offers and he nods.

"Okay, I'll be right back." He touches her arm gently. "Thanks for the coffee."

"No problem." She smiles at him with a nod and he turns to leave. He doesn't make it very far, though, when a child's voice rings through the room.

"Uncle Sammy!"

* * *

Sam stops dead in his tracks when he hears the little boy's voice. A few seconds later he sees a blur of a child running at full speed in his direction and braces himself to catch the little guy when he jumps at him.

What the hell is he doing here?

"Hi, Uncle Sammy." The boy tells him quietly this time, wrapping his arms around his neck. "Missed you."

"I missed you too, buddy." He pulls away just enough to look at his nephew's eyes. "What are you doing here?" He asks, brushing the his hair away from his eyes. "Where is your mom?" He looks around and doesn't see Sarah anywhere.

"She went to the bathroom and told me to wait here. That you'd be right over." The boy explains and Sam nods. "But then I followed the police lady mom was talking to and I found you." he adds proudly.

"Alright, how about we go back to where your mom left you, so she won't worry?" He suggests and the boy nods, resting his head on Sam's shoulder.

"Okay." He rubs his hand gently over his nephew's back and wonders just what brought Sarah here when she wasn't supposed to come to Toronto for another two weeks. With a heavy sigh, he makes his way back to booking and pops his head in. "Andy?" He calls her out and she looks up at him. He feels bad for her; she looks exhausted.

"Yeah?" She replies, looking at him curiously when she sees he has a little boy in his arms, who looks up at her when he hears someone else's voice.

"Hi," The boy says shyly and gives her a little wave, making her smile.

"Hi." She greets him and can't help but appreciate how good Sam looks with a kid. She meets his gaze and raises an eyebrow in question.

"This is my nephew Jamie." He explains and turns to the boy. "Buddy, this is my partner, Officer McNally." He introduces them and Jamie smiles at her, showing that his two front teeth are missing, making him even more adorable.

"Nice to meet you, Jamie." She tells him and Sam looks at her with a small smile.

"You too. Hey, Uncle Sammy, isn't she your... What's it called?" Jamie looks up, seemingly trying to remember the word as Sam watches amused. "Oh! Rookie!" he exclaims and Sam turns when he hears Andy chuckling.

"Yeah, she was." He tells Jamie and narrows his eyes at her to get her to stop laughing. "But she's not a rookie anymore." He explains and the boy thinks his words through. "Come on, let's go find your mom." He starts to make his way out of booking - he doesn't want Jamie here anymore than he needs to be - and turns back to Andy when they reach the door. "I'll be back soon."

"Don't worry about it. Go take care of your family." She reassures him and he nods gratefully.

"Bye, Officer McNally." Jamie calls out when they're leaving and Sam can't help but laugh at his nephew's antics.

They make their way back to the barn and Sam puts Jamie on a chair, kneeling down in front of him. The boy looks so much like him when he was this age, that Sam doesn't even have to wonder what a kid of his will look like. Sarah still isn't back, apparently, and Andy did say she looked upset, so he is definitely worried.

"Jamie, buddy." He catches the boy's attention by tickling his sides, making him giggle. "Hey, is everything okay at home?" He asks gently and the smile vanishes from his nephew's face. "Jamie, what is it?" He says quietly, but the boy only shrugs.

"I don't want to talk about it." He murmurs and Sam frowns, concerned.

"Hey, Jamie, come on." He touches the boy's cheek gently and his concern multiplies when he sees his eyes fill with tears. "What's wrong?"

"It's dad." He gets out and a tear escapes his eyes.

Jamie throws himself again into his arms and Sam holds him tight, whispering in his ear that everything is going to be okay. He is going to kill the son of a bitch if he did anything to hurt his nephew or his sister. He stands up and takes Jamie with him, holding him securely in his arms. When he turns around, he sees his sister watching them from a few feet away. She looks like she has been crying as she makes her way to them.

"Oh, Sammy." She looks so defeated that Sam doesn't know what to do. "I'm sorry to just barge in like this. We went by your place, but you weren't there and I kept getting the voice mail on your phone."

Sam reaches for his phone in his pocket and realizes the battery is dead. He shows it to her and she nods, letting out a heavy sigh.

"Want to tell me what happened?" He asks gently, leading her to one of the empty interview rooms. Jamie is still holding onto him as if his life depended on it. "Jamie mentioned something about Matt." He comments quietly when they sit down and Sarah's expression darkens. "What did he do?"

"Not here, Sam. We can talk about it later." She effectively ends the conversation and Sam nods in understanding. "How long until you can get out of here?"

"My shift ends at ten, but I can take you guys home right now. I'll talk to Frank." He offers, but Sarah shakes her head.

"No, you don't have to do that." She touches his hand and squeezes it gently. "We can wait. Maybe I'll take Jamie to get something to eat, right, honey?" She rubs her son's back lightly.

"I want to stay with Uncle Sammy." He mumbles and Sam stiffens, knowing that will not go well with his sister. Especially when she is already this upset.

"Jamie, Uncle Sammy is working. He can't look after you right now." Sarah tells him, but he shakes his head.

"No, I want to stay with Uncle Sammy." He protests fiercely. "I don't want to go home!"

"Jamie, hey. Come on, buddy, look at me." Sam pulls away a little to meet the boy's gaze. "Hey, you guys are staying with me tonight. Alright? I just need to finish my shift and then we'll all go to my house, okay?" He tells him and Jamie nods, resting his head back on Sam's shoulder. "Now how about we go get you some hot chocolate?"

"Okay." Jamie murmurs and Sam lets out a relieved sigh. Crisis number one averted.

When they are leaving the interview room, he bumps into Andy, in the hallway, his eyes widening when he looks at her cheek.

"What happened?" He asks confused at the bruise already forming on her skin. As if she didn't have enough going on already. She sighs, frustrated.

"Dov and Gail brought in this guy, completely high, and he got violent when we tried to put him in a cell. That was his elbow." She explains angrily and grimaces when he touches her cheek gently to inspect the bruise. "Today seriously sucks." She adds and he chuckles. "It's not funny, Sam."

"You're right, it's not." He cradles her cheek and resists the urge to lean in and press a kiss to her skin. "Come on, let's get some ice on this." His hand slips down to the small of her back to lead her to the break room.

"Does it hurt much?" Jamie asks curiously and Andy lets out a quiet laugh.

"Yeah, it kind of does, Jamie." She tells him and he nods somberly. She turns to his sister and nods in greeting.

"Oh, uh." He remembers suddenly that they are not alone and turns to Sarah as well. "Sarah, this is Andy McNally, my partner. Andy, this is my sister, Sarah Armstrong." He introduces them and he watches as his sister looks interestedly from him to Andy.

"Nice to meet you, Officer McNally. I've heard a lot about you." Sarah shakes her hand and Andy smiles, raising an eyebrow in question at him.

"Nice to meet you too." She says and Sam leads them to the break room. "You've been talking about me, huh?" She bumps her shoulder into his teasingly. "I wonder what your sister has to say." She grins at him and then grimaces when her cheek hurts. "Ow."

"Shut up." Sam mutters, annoyed.

This is going to be a long night.

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**A/N: Love it? Hate it? Tell me all about it when you review!**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Have I mentioned how ridiculously awesome you guys are? I am simply overwhelmed by the amount of support and feedback. Thank you so much. Really.**

* * *

**On the Edge**

* * *

**Chapter 6**

"Why don't you go talk to Frank about leaving a little earlier?" Andy asks, pressing a cloth with some ice in it to her bruised cheek.

Sam is busy pouring some coffee for his sister, while his nephew sips his hot chocolate carefully at one of the tables. He turns to Andy and smiles sympathetically at her predicament before shrugging.

"That was my first reaction, but Sarah said she and Jamie can wait." He explains, giving the cup of coffee to his sister, and makes his way to her, pulling the ice away from her cheek to inspect the bruise.

"Yeah, I didn't even mean to bother Sam at work, but when I couldn't reach him, I didn't really have a choice." Sarah explains herself, running a hand through her boy's hair, before turning back to Andy. "I don't want to cause anymore trouble."

"It's fine by me, really, if he takes you guys home. I mean, I can cover for him." She insists, thinking that a police station is definitely no place for a kid to be in, even if his uncle is a police officer. "We only have a couple of hours left, anyway."

"I already told her all that, McNally. She won't listen to me." He rolls his eyes, glancing at his sister, who glares at him, effectively shutting him up. Sam turns back to Andy, brushing his thumb lightly over her bruise soothingly.

"_Ow_, don't do that, Sam." She grimaces when Sam touches a particularly sore point on her skin.

"Sorry." He apologizes sheepishly, before pressing the cloth with ice back to her cheek. "Keep this on, so it'll keep the swelling to a minimum." With his free hand, he brushes her bangs away from her eyes and offers a small, almost timid smile. "Hell of a day, huh?" He tugs at her ponytail and she lets out a quiet laugh.

"You can say that again." She murmurs, leaning forward slightly, so she can rest her forehead on his shoulder for a moment.

"Are you feeling any better?" He asks her quietly, his hand on the back of her neck so warm that if he keeps doing what he is doing with his thumb on her skin, she just might fall sleep. Or spontaneously combust. Those are two very good possibilities.

"Yeah, actually. A little." She pushes herself back to a more suitable position for the work place and looks up at him. "Thanks." She covers his hand that is still touching the side of her neck and lets out a sigh.

"No problem." He tells her and they smile at each other for a minute, eyes locked.

"So, I'm going to take Jamie out to get some dinner." Sarah interrupts their moment and they jump apart, startled, almost as if they have been burned. When Andy manages to look at her, Sam's sister is looking at them interestedly, a smirk on her lips and a knowing look in her eyes. Andy feels her cheeks burn with embarrassment. "Anywhere you guys would recommend?"

"Uh, there is a diner about a block away from here, turning east." Sam runs a hand through his hair, clearly uncomfortable, but still offers a small, reassuring grin in Andy's direction. "They have some decent food there." He nods at his sister.

"Alright. Come on, baby. Let's go." Sarah ruffles Jamie's hair and reaches out for him to take her hand. "We'll let you guys get back to work." She nods in their direction, her eyes twinkling. "Sammy, do me a favor and charge your phone, will you? Call me when you're done?"

"Yeah, sure. You got it." He reassures her and picks up Jamie for a hug when the boy lifts his arms up. "Be good to your mom, buddy. I'll see you soon."

"I will." The boy nods and kisses his cheek affectionately. "Hope you'll feel better soon, Officer McNally." He surprises her by reaching with his small arms to give her a quick hug. Andy hugs him and runs a hand through his hair.

"Thanks, Jamie. And you can call me Andy, okay? No need for this Office McNally thing." She wrinkles her nose at him with a grin and he smiles back, nodding.

"Okay, Andy." He says, testing out the name, before wriggling from Sam's arms to get down, which his uncle immediately obliges. "Bye, Uncle Sammy." He calls over his shoulder, running to his mom and taking her hand.

When they disappear from the doorway, Sam lets out a heavy sigh and leans against the counter. Andy puts the ice away and gently touches her face to check the damage.

"So, that's my family." He mutters, motioning at the door, and runs a hand through his hair again, before turning to her. "The last thing I expected to happen today was this." He lets out a quiet laugh, shaking his head.

"Is everything okay with them?" Andy asks curiously and he shrugs. She leans against the counter as well and allows their arms to touch.

"I'm not really sure. Sarah wouldn't tell me anything. Said she didn't want to talk about it in front of Jamie." He looks at her and finds her concerned expression. She keeps silent, waiting for him to continue. "Whatever it is, it's something to do with her husband and I'm going to kill him if he did anything to hurt them." He finishes with a harsh whisper, mostly to himself and Andy reaches out to gently caress his arm in comfort.

"Well, whatever it is, she needs you right now." She tells him and he nods, covering her hand with his. "Why don't you go talk to Frank and say you have a family emergency? Take them home." She suggests and he intwines his fingers with hers.

"Yeah, you're right." He kisses her hand gently and she smiles, biting her bottom lip to contain herself. "You sure you're going to be okay here?" She nods and has to resist the urge to just step closer and let him hold her for a little bit. They both know exactly what is going on between them and it's only a matter of time before they give in. She is absolutely sure. "Rain check on our late dinner?"

"Of course, don't worry about it. Go take care of your family." She smiles and leans in to kiss his cheek, lingering for just a moment too long.

"Andy!" Luke's voice makes them jump apart, but their hands remain entwined. "I heard you got hurt. Jerry said that..." He trails off when he sees that she is not alone and that the person who is with her is Sam. Andy takes a deep breath, bracing herself for whatever he is going to throw her way now. "What exactly is going on here?" He glares at Sam and she knows Luke is fuming at what he just saw.

"Nothing, I'm fine. The guy hit me, but it's just bruised." She tells him and hopes he will leave it at that. "You should go talk to Frank." She tells Sam quietly, squeezing his hand. He looks at Luke and then back at her.

"Are you sure you're going to be okay here?" He lets her hand go before Luke attacks him, if the look on his face is any indication.

"Yeah. Go. Sarah needs you." She encourages him and closes her fists in an attempt to not reach out for him again. She has gotten used to touching him pretty much freely in the last 24 hours, so it's difficult to keep her hands in check now. "I'll call you later." She whispers, knowing that Luke is watching them like a hawk.

"Alright." He starts to make his way towards the door and calls over his shoulder. "Night, Callaghan."

Luke doesn't respond and waits until Sam is gone to break the silence.

"You two sure looked cozy." He says in a venom filled voice. "You know, for two people who claim they are just friends."

"Luke, my life is not any of your business anymore." She turns her back on him and pours herself another cup of coffee. When it's done, she grabs her cup and starts to make her way out of the room, but he grabs her wrist.

"Are you sleeping with him?" He asks furiously and Andy has to take a deep breath to keep her temper in check. Some nerve he has to even ask her that after what he's done. "Andy, it's a simple question. Are you sleeping with him? Are you cheating on me with him?"

"Oh, that's _rich_ coming from you, Luke. Are you seriously asking me that?" She pulls her arm away from his grasp and glares at him. "And when are you going to understand that we are _over_? You cheated on me with your precious partner, so we're done. Now get the hell out of my way." She hisses at him, but he stays put, his hand reaching out to touch hers - gently this time.

"Are you sleeping with him?" He repeats and Andy groans. "Andy, just answer the question."

"My God, it's like talking to a wall." She frees herself from his grasp again and sidesteps him to get to the door. "And no, I'm not. And even if I were, it's none of your damn business." She nearly growls at him and leaves, without looking back.

* * *

Sam leaves the station and zips up his jacket in a feeble attempt at protecting himself from the cold. The snow is falling lightly and it is still miserably cold as he walks towards the diner he told Sarah about. He didn't get a chance to charge his phone before leaving, so he hopes she actually is there and didn't decide to go somewhere else.

The walk is short and soon enough he is opening the door to the establishment, his eyes immediately seeking out his sister and his nephew. He finds them at one of the last few booths close to the window. Jamie seems to be telling her a story pretty animatedly, but Sarah doesn't look like she is really paying attention. She looks up and meets his eyes, smiling a little when she sees him. He makes his way to where they are and leans down to press a kiss to her forehead.

"Uncle Sammy!" Jamie greets him happily and Sam smiles at him, poking his side jokingly so he will make room for him to sit next to him. "Where is Officer McNally?" He asks and Sam looks down at him surprised.

"She is still at work, why?" He asks, confused, and steals a french fry.

"I thought she was coming with you, is all." The boy shrugs and Sam looks from him to his sister, who is watching the exchange with an amused look in her eyes. "I mean, isn't she your girlfriend?"

Jamie looks up at him, his question so earnest, that Sam is taken aback at how well he seems to have read them. Sure, they are not there yet, but he and Andy have surely made some progress over the past few days, especially in the past 24 hours. He shakes his head and steals another French fry, this time dipping it into some ketchup.

"She is just my partner at work, buddy." He explains to his nephew, munching on his fry. "Why? Did you like her?"

"Yeah, she's really nice." Jamie says and reaches for his fries. "You're not even friends with her? Because you looked like you were at least friends." He insists and Sam looks at his sister at a loss, but Sarah just laughs lightly.

"I'm glad you're finding this entertaining." He mutters in her direction, making her laugh more. "Yes, she's my friend, Jamie. And I care about her very much." He tells him and hopes that's the end of it. Jamie seems to accept his answer.

"Okay. Do you want a burger?" He asks and Sam nods, signaling the young waitress.

After his order, Sam eats his burger thoughtfully while Jamie draws on napkins and Sarah looks out the window. He orders another burger with fries and a Coke to go, thinking he can bring some dinner back to Andy. Sarah doesn't seem to want to talk and he doesn't want to push her. It's eating at him, though, not knowing what is going on with his sister that has got her so rattled. With a sigh, he eats the last of his burger and pushes it down with some Coke. Sarah still looks lost in her own world, so he looks at Jamie, who has been yawning for the past fifteen minutes.

"You guys about done?" He asks his sister and she blinks, startled out of her thoughts. "We should probably go. Jamie here is going to pass out any minute now." He tells her and she nods, searching for her wallet. Sam beats her to it and throws a couple of bills on the table. "I got it, Sarah. Don't worry." He reassures her and she nods again. She seems to have retreated into her shell, much like she did when she was younger and was upset. Specially after the attack. "Come on, big guy."

He ruffles Jamie's hair and gets up, waiting for his nephew to do the same. The boy immediately takes his hand and Sam waits for his sister to get her things and follow them. He grabs Andy's dinner at the counter and waves goodnight to the waitress, saying he left the money back on the table. Once they are out on the street, he helps Jamie zip up his jacket and then does the same on his.

"We have to go back to the station to get my truck." He tells them and Jamie yawns widely again, making Sam chuckle. "Can you stay awake for another five minutes, buddy?"

"Sure." Jamie says and yawns again, making Sam do the same.

"Alright, come on." He takes his nephew's hand again and touches his sister's arm to get her attention. "Hey, you okay?" He asks, concerned, but she just shakes her head.

"It's been a long day, Sammy." She sighs and pulls her coat closer around her body. "We can talk when we get to your place."

She sounds exhausted and Sam decides not to push it. When they get to the station, they make their way to the parking lot and he hands her the keys.

"I gotta run inside for a minute. Get him in the car, he's practically asleep on his feet." He runs his hand through Jamie's dark hair affectionately. "Are you going to be okay for a few minutes?"

"Yeah, sure. Go give Andy her dinner." She grins slightly, not really reaching her eyes, but the way she is looking at him, he knows he wasn't fooling anyone with his speech about being just friends with Andy a few minutes ago.

"I won't be long." He promises and makes his way into the station, immediately making a detour to booking. There is no one in sight and Andy is focused on the computer screen, probably finishing up processing the latest arrest. "Hey." He says quietly and chuckles when she jumps at the sound of his voice.

"Hi." She greets him, surprised. "I thought you'd be long gone by now." She tells him and he shrugs.

"Went to get something to eat with Sarah and Jamie down the street. My truck is still here." He steps behind the counter where she is working and puts her dinner on the desk. "Thought I'd bring you some dinner. Figured you might be hungry."

She looks up at him with a pleased smile - and, man, he really, really loves her smile - and peeks inside the paper bag. He reaches for her, unable to stop himself, and tugs on her ponytail affectionately.

"You're entirely too good for me, Sam." She comments sincerely and stands up to kiss his cheek. "Thank you." She says and he wraps an arm around her waist, pulling her closer. Just feeling her body pressed against his right now is doing so many things to him that he has to fight really hard to control himself.

"It was no trouble." He tells her and leans against the desk, pulling her to stand between his legs, hands slowly running up and down her sides. "Did Callaghan give you any trouble?" He asks and she rolls her eyes.

"He's being an idiot. Can't get it through his head that we're over." She sighs heavily and steps closer, one hand on his chest, making his heart suddenly skip a beat and then work overtime. "It was ridiculous." She continues and he is feeling braver tonight, so he pulls her closer, wrapping an arm around her waist, delighted when he hears a gasp escaping her lips.

"Do you need a ride home?" He asks quietly, his eyes traveling from her own to her lips and back again. Her breath is coming out faster and he is so enjoying the fact that he has as much effect on her as she has on him.

"I'm catching a ride with Traci." She bites her lips, bringing her hand up to touch his jaw, her thumb gently gliding over his lips. He kisses her thumb, then turns his head to press a kiss to her palm, much like she did this morning.

"Let me drive you home." He says, his voice coming out huskier than he thought it would. "I want to spend a little more time with you." He admits and she smiles, leaning in.

"Andy, are you..." They hear Nash's voice and jump apart. Sam groans inwardly; this is getting downright _ridiculous_. Can't they have a single moment alone, without someone interrupting? "Oh, sorry." She apologizes sheepishly and then smirks at her friend. Andy groans, annoyed, and leans forward, resting her forehead on his shoulder again, and takes a deep breath.

"Sarah is waiting for you." She whispers and runs a hand through his hair, making him close his eyes for a moment at her touch. "She needs you tonight. We have time." She meets his gaze and he nods, knowing she is right.

"To be continued?" He asks, pulling her closer again, pointedly ignoring Nash, who is still watching them with an amused grin. Andy leans in kisses his cheek.

"To be continued." She smiles at him and he nods, a small smile of his own playing on his lips. "Thanks for dinner."

"You're welcome. Talk tomorrow?" He asks and she nods. He lets her take a step back and waves to her friend. "Good night, Officer Nash." He nods at his fellow officer and walks past her.

He is just a few feet away when he hears Nash's voice again.

"_I knew it_!"

* * *

**A/N: Thoughts? Comments? Reviews?**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: You guys have completely blown me away with your response to this story. Thank you, thank you, thank you.**

* * *

**On the Edge**

* * *

**Chapter 7**

The ride back to his house is made mostly in silence. Sam went back to his truck to find Jamie already fast asleep in the back seat and Sarah seemingly immersed in her thoughts. He got into the driver's seat and, after asking again if she was okay, they were on their way. Now, as he opens the door to his place, Jamie held securely with one arm, he can see that his sister is getting nervous, which, in turn, just makes him more apprehensive about what he is about to hear.

They make it inside and Sam immediately takes Jamie to the spare bedroom on the second floor. He puts him in bed and the boy wakes up for a moment, only enough for him to pull his shoes and coat off, and then he quickly falls back asleep, tucked in under the blankets. Sam watches him for a moment, wondering if this is something that will ever be a part of his life. Being a father. He is not getting any younger and, to be honest, he never really thought about settling down and having a family. After all, UC work has been his life for the better part of the past ten years and he is damn good at it. But now that he thinks about it, he realizes that he didn't really have anyone to leave behind. Sarah has a family of her own, so he always thought that if something happened to him, she would be taken care of.

But now... Well, now things are different. Things have been different since the moment Andy quite literally barged into his life and tackled him to the ground. At first, he was furious with her, of course. But as he got to know her, working day in, day out with her, teaching her what it really means to be a cop, she somehow got under his skin and into his head. And his heart. He can't even imagine his life without her in it anymore and, while that train of thought would once upon a time make him run for the hills, now he is just content with it. He has accepted that his feelings for her go deeper than ever before and he is - strangely - completely okay with that.

Huh. Who would have thought? Sam Swarek falling for a rookie. He shakes his head, trying to get out of his head and focus on his sister. Now that Jamie is taken care of and fast asleep in a warm bed, he makes his way back into the living room. Sarah is sitting on the couch, the TV playing some TV show he has never seen before, but she doesn't really seem to be paying attention. He makes a detour to his bedroom to find his phone charger and plugs it in before walking back to his sister.

"Do you want something to drink, Sarah?" He calls out, making a detour to the kitchen. "Some coffee, hot chocolate? Maybe something with alcohol?"

"Coffee would be nice, Sammy." She tells him and stands up from the couch, making her way into the kitchen. She sits on a stool and Sam can feel her eyes following his moves, like she did so many times when they were younger and she was teaching him how to cook.

"So," He turns around to face her, waiting for the coffee to brew. "Want to tell me what happened?" He finally asks and she sighs, covering her face with her hands for a moment.

"It's a long story."

"We got all night." He replies easily and sits across from her, reaching out to take her hand. "What's going on, Sarah?"

"Matt is having an affair." She merely whispers, her voice so defeated, that Sam feels his own heart break for her. He lets her continue, only squeezes her hand in support. "He's been distant these past few months. At first, I thought it was because he was busy with work, but then I found lipstick marks on his shirts, underwear in his pockets that obviously weren't mine." She lets out a sad laugh. "I was ready to file for divorce, you know? Didn't even want to get into a fight with him about it. I mean, what was the point?"

"Sarah..." He starts, but she stops him, squeezing his hand.

"Please, let me get this out, Sammy." She pleads with him and he nods, standing up to pour them both a cup of coffee. "Then yesterday, he asks me about Kevin, if I'm sleeping with him, completely out of the blue."

"Who is Kevin?" Sam interrupts, confused.

"He is a new history teacher at the school and we've gotten close. He is a really nice guy and he didn't know anyone in St. Catherines, so I tried to make him feel welcome, you know?" She explains, taking a sip from her coffee. "But we are really just friends. I mean, he's just lost his wife about a year ago and he has a little girl, about Jamie's age." Sam nods and she takes a deep breath, before continuing. "So, he asks me this morning, if I'm, and I quote, fucking the new teacher. I was so shocked that he would even say that. I mean, you know Matt, he's always been so calm and collected, right? So, I tell him I'm obviously not and he doesn't believe me." She shakes her head, brushing her hair back behind her ear. "Then I made the mistake of saying that he was a hypocrite because I knew all about his affair and I was filing for a divorce. And you know I have a temper, so everything that I had been bottling up until then about this just came out."

"Sarah, did he hurt you?" Sam asks softly, already dreading the answer.

"He just kind of became a completely different person when I told him I knew everything. When I said I had already talked to a lawyer, he just flipped out. He..." She stops suddenly, swallowing hard and the pain is so obvious in her eyes that Sam has to fight hard not to immediately get up and hug her. He knows his sister and knows she needs to get everything out first. "I think he was aiming for my face, but I tried to turn around and... And protect myself. I didn't remember anything you taught me about self defense, Sammy. He just totally caught me off guard."

"He hit you?" He whispers furiously, his anger for this man burning inside him when Sarah wipes away her tears with the back of her hand. "Sarah, honey. Did he hit you?" He repeats the question and she nods, a sob escaping her lips as her tough façade she has been keeping up all day crumbles to the ground. "Oh, sweetie."

He moves his chair and reaches for her, pulling her into his arms. She cries quietly for a few minutes and Sam lets her get it all out, just whispering soothing words in her ear.

"He got me in my arm and shoulder, sort of, and I lost balance and fell against the table. You know, the kitchen table and how it has that pointy edge that I always keep bumping into?" She continues and he nods, pressing a kiss to her hair. "So, I fell right onto that pointy edge and there's this huge bruise on my hip and another one where he hit me. For a second there, I thought he had broken something or dislocated my shoulder because he just hit me so hard, Sam. It hurt so much." She whispers, her voice shaking as a new wave of tears take over her.

"Will you let me take a look at it?" He asks softly, hoping she will comply. He needs to know the extend of the damage and if she needs any medical attention.

Sarah nods and lifts up her shirt and pulls her jeans down a little to show him the bruise. It already has a nasty purple, blue tone to it and it looks really painful. He gets up and walks over to the fridge, pulling out some frozen peas. She takes it from his hands when he offers it to her and presses it to her hip.

"The other one is on my shoulder and arm, mostly. I think he got a second one in, but I was so in shock that I don't really remember." She points to her left shoulder and tells him to pull her shirt down a little. He can't see much of it, but from what he can see, it almost matches the bruise from her hip in color, only this one seems to be bigger. "Jamie saw everything, Sammy." She brushes another tear away angrily. "He was so scared and yelling at Matt to stop."

"I'm going to kill him." Sam mutters darkly, but Sarah shakes her head. "Sarah, he hurt you. He _punched_ you. I..." He runs a hand through his hair agitated. "You have to press charges."

"I just want to be as far away from him as possible, Sam." She cries into his shoulder and he hugs her again, rubbing soothing circles on her back.

"He needs to be punished for this. You have to press charges. _Please._" He nearly begs her and she nods, brushing away her tears again. "We'll take care of this first thing in the morning, okay?" She nods again and he presses a kiss to her forehead. "I'm not letting him anywhere near you and Jamie again. I promise, Sarah. He's _never_ hurting you guys again."

"I just can't believe he did this, you know?" She sniffles, pulling back to look at him. He nods and brushes away her tears with his thumb. "I need to make some calls tomorrow. Get some time off from work. And, uh, I need to call Jamie's school to let them know he will be away for a little while. Can we stay here, Sammy?"

"Of course you can, Sarah. You don't even have to ask." He brushes her hair back behind her ear and offers a small, sad smile to her. "I have the day off tomorrow and we can take care of everything, alright?" She nods and rests her head on his shoulder. "You guys can stay for as long as you want."

"Thanks, little bro." She smiles up at him, but her eyes are so sad, that Sam doesn't know what else to do to make her feel better. "I think I'm going to head to bed." She says after a few minutes and he nods, letting her stand up. Now that he knows she is hurt, he can see she is favoring her right side a little as she walks towards the stairs. "Night, Sam." She calls over her shoulder.

"Night." He replies, before burying his face in his hands, an overwhelming need to cry suddenly closing up his throat.

* * *

"So," Traci says when Andy sits back down at her desk and pulls out the burger Sam got for her. "That was interesting." She comments casually and Andy rolls her eyes. "You still denying there's nothing going on in McSwarek land?" She teases, her eyes twinkling with mirth.

"Okay, so there may be something going on. But I still stand by my word. Nothing happened yet." Andy tells her and takes a bite out of her burger. "That was the first time something significant happened, but you barged in."

"Sorry about that." Traci says sheepishly and shrugs. "How was I supposed to know you were about to make out with Sam Swarek in booking of all places?"

"Well, I was really just thanking him. I mean, he brought me dinner." She shrugs and Traci narrows her eyes at her. "It's true." She insists, laughing, and offers her burger. "Want some?"

"Nah, I'll eat at The Penny. Are you coming with us?"

"Yeah, sure. I won't stay long, though. Still not feeling too great." She tells Traci and leans back into her chair to savor her dinner. "And could you please not mention what you saw here to anyone? We 're still trying to figure it out ourselves, you know?"

"Of course, honey. Don't worry about it, your secret is safe with me." Traci grins, making Andy chuckle. "Seriously, not even a kiss?"

"Nope." She shakes her hear and takes a sip of her Coke. "Not since the blackout."

"But you guys are moving forward, right?" She asks and Andy nods. "So that's good. Progress."

"I mean, I hope so. It's so weird, Trace. We are not even together yet, but I've never felt like this before. Not even with Luke. Never like this." She confesses and Traci smiles at her, reaching out for her Coke to take a sip. "I just feel so... Good, you know? Happy, when he is around me. I don't even know how to explain."

"That's love, Andy. Simple as that." Traci tells her wisely and Andy shakes her head, a happy smile tugging her lips up.

"I don't know. We're not even together yet. I mean, I haven't even slept with him. It's always been so complicated with us." She says, eating the last bit of her burger. "How can it be love already?"

"I guess you just know when it's right." Traci shrugs again, smiling at her friend's happiness. "And that guy out there? He's right for you, honey Everyone knows."

Andy bites her lip, taking her friend's words in before nodding. She sure hopes Traci is right because she is already in too deep. She is not sure if it's really love, but her feelings for Sam are so strong that sometimes it scares her. But she also knows she needs to give this a chance and see where it goes. Sam seems to feel the same way, so she is not worried about him not reciprocating her feelings. But still, it's scary to jump into a relationship when there is so much at stake.

She follows Traci out of booking and into the women's locker room to take a shower and change. Once she is back into her civvies, she checks her phone and can't help but feel slightly disappointed that there are no new texts from him. Luke seems to have left her alone for the rest of the day, so that's a small victory.

Pulling on her coat, hat and gloves, she leaves the barn with Traci and Dov on Traci's car. The ride to The Penny is filled with laughter as Dov tells them about all the weird calls he and Chris responded to today and Andy actually feels good for the first time in a while. Of course she is still fighting a cold, but she feels much better than she did this morning. Most of all, she feels happy. Her life is good right now and that's all she could ever ask for.

About an hour later, she is laughing with her friends at their table, when her phone rings. She sees Sam's name on the screen and has to fight to keep the smile in. Traci catches her look and, after seeing the reason, elbows her playfully and nods to the door. Andy nods and excuses herself, heading to the door where it's a little bit quieter and she will have a little bit more privacy.

"Hey," She answers happily, but frows when she hears his voice. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, yeah. I just." He takes a deep breath and she can feel he is agitated. "Sarah told me what happened." He lets out a heavy sigh and continues in a small voice, sounding so defeated that Andy doesn't know what to do. "He beat her, Andy. He's having an affair and he punched her when she confronted him about it." He swallows hard and Andy hears the pain in his voice so clearly that it breaks her heart.

"Oh, my God, Sam. Is she okay? I mean, physically?" She asks, leaning back against the wall, closing her eyes, trying to think of what she can do to help, to ease their pain.

"Yeah, she just has some bruises, but still. I can't believe he did this. All I want to do right now is hunt him down and beat the shit out his sorry ass for ever touching my sister." He finishes harshly. "Where are you?"

"I'm at The Penny with everyone." She tells him and bites her lip. "I'm so sorry, Sam." She finally says after a moment. "I wish there was something I could do to help."

"Can you come over?" He asks suddenly and she sighs in relief that he was the one who suggested it. "Just for a little bit."

"Yeah, of course I can. Let me just go get my things and I'll take a cab." She tells him, walking back into the room. People are laughing and talking all around her and she wishes that this hadn't happened to Sarah, that she could be here with them having fun. "I'll be there soon, okay?"

"Thanks, Andy."

"That's what partners are for, right?" She says with a small smile, hoping to cheer him up a little. "And Sam? Everything is going to be okay." She tells him before they hang up.

She makes her way to her friends and grabs her bag, saying that something came up and she needs to go right away. Traci looks at her concerned and she just shakes her head, telling her she will fill her in later. She says goodbye to everyone and five minutes later, she is in a cab on her way to Sam's. The ride doesn't take long and she can see him waiting for her at the door when she gets out of the cab.

She doesn't even think before walking over to him and throwing her arms around him in a tight hug. She pulls back a little to look up at him and sees that his eyes are a little red, and wonders if he's been crying. He looks so sad, that she feels that the only thing she can offer him right now is her company; hope it will be enough to soothe his pain.

When he leans down, touching her lips with his gently, she is not even surprised. It's not about passion or lust. Right now, he just needs comfort and reassurance that she is there for him. She kisses him back, threading her fingers through his hair to pull him closer and allows him to deepen the kiss. It only lasts for a moment, but it's enough to know that this is right. This is what they both need.

"Hi." She whispers when they pull apart and he smiles at her.

"Hi." He says back and leans in to kiss her again. He touches her nose with his gently, in such a sweet, intimate caress, that Andy can't help but smile contentedly. "Let's get inside before we freeze out here." He tells her and pulls her in, closing the door behind them. "Thanks for coming."

"Nowhere I'd rather be, Sam." She smiles at him and reaches out her hand to take his, letting him lead her into the living room. "I just wish this hadn't happened to her. I wish I could do something to help."

"You're already helping." He pulls her to him again, wrapping his arms around her waist. "Just being here right now helps more than you think." He whispers and closes the distance between them again, pressing his lips to hers.

Later, they are on his couch with the TV on, some old movie playing. He has an arm around her and she makes herself comfortable by leaning into his side, head on his chest. She feels him kissing her hair every few minutes; sometimes she looks up at him and catches his lips with hers lovingly. She doesn't try anything and neither does he. She knows tonight is not about this.

She thinks back to her conversation with Traci earlier tonight and finally understands what her friend was going on and on about. It all makes sense now.

When it's right, you just know.

* * *

**A/N: You've created a review-loving monster. So please, share your thoughts?**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: First of all, I am so, so sorry I disappeared. When I started writing this I was on medical leave because I had a small fracture on my foot. So basically I had a lot of time in my hands. Now that I am back to work, things have ben hectic because everything is backed up since I was away for three weeks. Anyway, I hope you guys can forgive me and that you're still interested. Enjoy!**

* * *

**On the Edge**

* * *

**Chapter 8**

Andy startles awake, sitting up in bed in panic. Breathing hard, she looks around, trying to remember why she is not in her own bedroom. It's only when she feels someone touching her back gently that she realizes where she is and everything comes back to her.

She is at Sam's.

Letting out a relieved sigh, she lies back down and allows him to pull her closer, back into his arms. It's still very dark out there and she can see his alarm clock on the night stand informing that it's just past four in the morning. He kisses her forehead and she snuggles closer to him, tucking her face into the crook of his neck, breathing him in. Now that her heart rate has returned to normal, she can finally replay everything that happened over the past few hours.

Sam convinced her to stay the night, telling her that it was too late and too cold for her to go home by herself. Not that she needed much convincing, if she is being honest. So he led her into his room, gave her something to wear and they slipped under the covers. She was so exhausted that she was asleep in a matter of minutes. Her cold had really taken its toll on her and she still doesn't feel great. But being here, in his arms, knowing that they are finally moving forward with whatever their relationship is, already makes her feel a little bit better.

"You okay?" She hears him whisper in her ear, tightening his hold on her. She nods against his neck, pressing a light kiss to his warm skin. "Bad dream?"

"I don't know." She pulls back to look at him and smiles at how sleepy he looks. Reaching out, she runs her fingers through his hair gently and he closes his eyes, sighing contentedly. "I don't really remember." She leans in and catches his lips with hers in a quick kiss. "Go back to sleep." She sees him nod and kisses his jaw before tucking herself into the crook of his neck again.

She takes a deep breath in and wills herself to relax and fall back asleep. She keeps her hand on his chest where she can feel his heart beating underneath his t-shirt. The rhythm of his heart and his steady breathing eventually lull her back to sleep.

Next time she wakes up, Sam's side is empty. She stretches her body and yawns, before touching his side of the bed. It's still warm, meaning she hasn't been alone for too long. Looking to her right, she sees that it's almost 8 and she needs to meet the real estate agent in a little over two hours. With a sigh, she sits up and yawns again, pleased that she feels a lot better, compared to 24 hours ago.

Then she realizes that they are not alone and that she will have to face his sister and his nephew after spending the night with Sam. Damn it. Somehow that slipped her mind last night when he was doing a very thorough job at distracting her with his touch and his lips. Andy hurriedly changed back into her clothes and tried to fix her hair into a messy ponytail, hoping she looked at least somewhat presentable. Thank god Sam had an ensuite bathroom, so she could splash some water on her face and brush her teeth with a new toothbrush she found on the counter. Smiling at his thoughtfulness, she looked at herself in the mirror and deemed her reflection good enough to go out there and face her partner's family.

When she walks into the kitchen, she sees Sam talking quietly to Sarah. Jamie is drawing something, sitting at the table, the focused look on his face entirely too adorable. He looks up and meets her gaze, smiling at her.

"Hi, Andy." He waves at her and she forces her feet to carry her further into the room when both Sam and Sarah look up at her. "Want to draw with me? Look, I did Uncle Sammy in his police uniform." He shows her the drawing proudly and she can't help but smile at him.

"That looks amazing, Jamie." She tells him and he grins widely, so proud of himself. "Morning." She says quietly to the other two occupants of the kitchen. Sarah gives her a small smile.

"Coffee?" She asks and Andy nods, walking over to them. She stops at Sam's side and he wraps an arm around her waist, pulling her closer to his side. "We were just talking about you." Sarah tells her and Andy looks up at her surprised, then turns to Sam, eyebrow raised in question. "Good things, don't worry." Sarah quickly adds "He was just telling me about your partnership and that you came over last night to help him out." She explains and Andy nods resting her head on his shoulder. "Thank you for that." She tells her sincerely and hands over a coffee mug.

"It's what friends are for, right?" Andy shrugs and Sarah looks at her knowingly. "Partners too." She adds, feeling her cheeks heating up. Sam presses a kiss to her hair and she sighs happily.

"Morning." He whispers into her hair and she looks up at him with a small, almost shy smile. "How'd you sleep?"

"Great." She tells him and leans in to kiss his cheek. "You?"

"Pretty great." He smiles at her and kisses her, hand caressing her cheek. The kiss is quick and chaste, both aware that both his sister and nephew are in the room with them. "You still going to check out those apartments?"

"Yeah, I have to meet the real estate agent at 10." She explains and takes a sip of her coffee. "Managed to schedule three visits for today."

"You're moving?' She hears Sarah ask and turns back to her, taking another sip of her coffee.

"Yeah, I've been essentially homeless for the past few weeks. I was just crashing at a friend's house, but I need to get my own place soon." Andy tells her and reaches for a piece of toast sitting on a plate on the counter. "We checked out a few places online a couple of nights ago and I'm going to go see them for myself today."

"Are you feeling better?" Sam asks her, refilling his own coffee mug. "You don't sound as bad as you did yesterday."

"Yeah, I do, actually. Still not back to normal, but at least I don't feel like I'm dying anymore." She shrugs and finishes her coffee. "Are you guys going to, uh, go to St. Catherines?" She asks quietly, hoping that she is not crossing a line here. Sarah turns to her, meeting her gaze for a moment before looking down with a defeated sigh.

"Yeah, we..." She starts, but the knot in her throat stops her words. Andy watches as she takes a deep breath and quickly brushes a tear away from her eyes. "We need to deal with everything and pack our bags. Sammy is letting us stay here for a little while." She explains and Andy nods, reaching out to squeeze her hand in comfort."I just wish we didn't have to bring Jamie. He doesn't need to see this, you know?"

"I can stay with him, if it's okay with you." Andy offers before her head can fully process what she is volunteering for. "I mean, I have to go visit a couple of apartments, but he can come with me." She adds and watches as Sam and his sister have an entire conversation with their eyes. Finally, Sarah nods and Sam pulls her back to him, wrapping his arms around her waist.

"You'd really do that?" Sarah asks, trying to give her an out, but Andy nods, covering Sam's hand with her own.

"Of course. It's no trouble." She smiles at her and Sarah nods, before turning to her son. "Maybe later I can take him to Traci's, so he can hang out with Leo. Would that be okay? I have to stop by my friend Traci's, anyway, and she has a son who is Jamie's age."

"That would be great, actually." Sam's sister tells her gratefully and Andy smiles. "Jamie, you're hanging out with Andy today. How does that sound?" She runs her fingers through her son's dark hair and Andy can't help but notice just how much the kid looks like Sam. He even has his cute dimples.

"Awesome." The boy smiles happily and Andy hears Sam chuckling behind her as he tightens his hold on her.

"Thank you." He whispers in her ear and she turns her head to look at him, kissing his cheek when he rests his chin on her shoulder.

* * *

Sam steals a glance at his sister, sighing quietly when he sees that she is lost in thought. They are on their way to St. Catherines and he is dreading whatever situation they are going to find once they get there. He is driving straight to a station close to Sarah's house so she can press charges against Matt. He knows this is going to be really hard on her and he is so grateful to Andy for taking Jamie out of their hands today. The last thing they need right now is for Jamie to be exposed to whatever is going to happen.

Before they left, Sarah called the school she works at and Jamie's school to let them know they would be away for a few days for personal reasons. His nephew seemed so excited to spend the day with Andy that he is not in the least worried about their day together. He knows Andy is good with kids. He's seen her around Traci's kid and they get along just fine.

What really worries him is a confrontation with Matt right now. He is hoping against hope that his brother in law is at work so Sarah won't have to face him. Looking at her again when they stop at a red light, he sees her wiping away her tears discreetly. Feeling his heart break for her, he reaches out and takes her hand in his. She looks at him, another tear rolling down her cheek, and Sam suddenly feels like he is nine years old again and that she has just been attacked for the first time. The worst part is that he feels just as helpless as he did when they were kids and that there is nothing he can do that will take away her pain.

"Hey," he squeezes her hand, making her meet his gaze. "We're going to get through this. Okay? You and me. Just like we always do." He promises her and she nods, brushing away another stray tear.

"Don't know what I'd do without you, Sammy." She whispers and he offers her a small, sad smile, pressing a kiss to the back of her hand, just like he used to do when they were little.

A couple of hours later, they park in front of her house. They have already gone to the station and he sat with her through her statement with the local police officer. They were told that they would send out a warrant for Matt's arrest and that she would have to testify in court, if it came to that. After they left the station, he could see that she felt slightly better and thanked god that at least this was something he could do to help.

He locks his truck when they both get out of the vehicle and follows his sister to her front door. The place seems to be deserted, so that is one crisis averted. They step inside and Sarah tells him to make them some coffee while she packs their things. When Sam steps into the kitchen, his heart skips a beat at the sight in front of him. The kitchen table is not in its usual spot and two of the chairs are overturned. He can only imagine his sister's struggle with her soon to be ex-husband and it nearly makes him sick to his stomach. Right there he swears that if he ever touches Sarah again, he will not be held responsible for his actions.

The doorbell ringing startles him out of his thoughts and he makes his way to the front door, calling out to Sarah that he will get it. When he opens the door, a tall man with brown hair and green eyes looks at him confused. He wears dark-rimmed glasses that make him look so much an intellectual teacher.

"Can I help you?" He asks the man and sees him stuffing his hands into his pockets, apparently nervous.

"Uh, is Sarah home?" The man asks, pushing his glasses up his nose, before meeting Sam's eyes.

"Who's asking?" Sam retorts suspiciously and the guy looks even more confused. He hears Sarah coming down the stairs.

"Oh, stop making him sweat, Sammy." She admonishes him and elbows his side playfully. "Hey, Kevin. Come on in." She smiles at the man and it all suddenly makes sense to Sam. This is the guy Matt thought she was having an affair with. "This is my brother, Sam Swarek." She introduces him and he sees a flash of recognition in Kevin's eyes. "Sammy, this is Kevin O'Connel."

"Nice to meet you." Kevin offers his hand and Sam shakes it, nodding at him. "I've heard a lot about you from Sarah."

"Nice to meet you too." Sam offers and Kevin smiles at him before turning to Sarah.

"Kate said you were going to be away for a while. I was worried." He tells her and Sam watches their interaction with interest. The guy obviously has feelings for his sister; his body language screams it for anyone to see.

"It's a long story, Kev. I'm staying with Sammy for a few days until I sort everything out." She explains, being as vague as possible and Sam can see that Kevin doesn't buy it.

Just as he is about to interfere on her behalf, his phone rings and he smiles when he sees Andy smiling face on his screen. It is really amazing just how seamlessly they have transitioned from friends to whatever they are. Of course they still have to talk things through, but he couldn't be happier about their relationship. It seems that now that they have crossed this invisible line, they just can't keep their hands off each other. He presses the green button and puts his phone to his ear.

"Hey." he answers with a smile, but it quickly fades when he hears her voice.

"Sam," her voice immediately gives her away. She sounds nervous. "We have a problem."

* * *

**A/N: Thoughts? **


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